In many jurisdictions, the scope of protection afforded by a patent is defined by the claims as
read either literally or under doctrine of equivalents. Infringement based on the doctrine of
equivalents is generally not based on any statutory law but rather has been
established via case law (e.g. Court decisions). The purpose of the doctrine of equivalents is to promote fair patent coverage so that
trivial departures (e.g., variants or deviations) from the claim language
cannot be used to avoid infringement.
This is the fourth post in our series
examining the law governing the doctrine of equivalents in several European
countries. Our first post examined the
law governing the doctrine of equivalents in Spain, our second post examined
the law in the Netherlands, and our third post examined the law in Germany. These posts can be viewed here: Doctrine of
Equivalents – Spain, Doctrine of
Equivalents – the Netherlands, and Doctrine of
Equivalents – Germany.
Doctrine of
Equivalents in Denmark
Background
Despite
its somewhat small size, Denmark is a fairly litigious country when it comes to
patent litigation. Some reasons for this
are: the cost of litigation is not
extremely high and Denmark is a highly technically developed country with many
specialized industries (such as, for example, pharmaceuticals). In Denmark, courts are organized in a
three-tier system comprising: (a) city courts; (b) two high courts (the Eastern
and Western High Courts) and the Maritime and Commercial High Court; and (c)
the Supreme Court. Most patent proceedings,
including proceedings for preliminary injunctions, are decided by the Maritime
and Commercial High Court in Copenhagen (Maritime Court), as the court of first
instance. Appeals from the Maritime
Court are to the Eastern High Court, and in some instances, the Supreme
Court.
As
the main venue for patent cases, the Maritime Court can be considered to be a
specialized patent court that having significant expertise in patent matters. Generally,
cases before the Maritime Court are heard by a permanent law judge with a law
degree and two technically qualified judges (who each may have a law degree)
who are individuals with relevant commercial and/or technical backgrounds
and/or experience. The proceedings are
generally conducted in Danish and infringement and validity claims are heard simultaneously
(i.e., there is no bifurcation). In
addition to patent cases, the Maritime Court hears other commercial cases such
as trademarks, designs, contracts, labor rights, bankruptcy, maritime law,
etc., but no criminal cases.
Claim
Construction
According to Article 69 European Patent Convention (EPC) the extent (“the
scope”) of the protection conferred by a European patent or application is determined
by the claims. Nonetheless, the description
(i.e., specification) and drawings are also considered when interpreting the
claims. Specifically, in Denmark, the claims
are construed to determine the “essential” or “significant” features or parts
of the invention. Language in the claims
that is not relevant to the “essential” or “significant” parts of the invention
(e.g., namely, non-essential features) may be given less or very little weight when
assessing the scope of protection.
Statements made by the patentee during examination
(i.e., prosecution) can be relevant to claim construction, particularly if made
for purposes of avoiding prior art (e.g., novelty and/or inventive step). Thus, as will be discussed in further detail
herein, prosecution history estoppel may apply in Denmark both in the context
of construing the claims as well as in the application of equivalency under the
doctrine of equivalents.
Patent Infringement
The
protocol for interpreting Article 69 EPC, which is an integral part of the EPC
according to Article 164(1) EPC, states:
Article 1 – General principles
Article 69 should not be interpreted as meaning that the extent of the protection conferred by a European patent is to be understood as that defined by the strict, literal meaning of the wording used in the claims, the description and drawings being employed only for the purpose of resolving an ambiguity found in the claims. Nor should it be taken to mean that the claims serve only as a guideline and that the actual protection conferred may extend to what, from a consideration of the description and drawings by a person skilled in the art, the patent proprietor has contemplated. On the contrary, it is to be interpreted as defining a position between these extremes, which combines a fair protection for the patent proprietor with a reasonable degree of legal certainty for third parties.
Article 2 – Equivalents
For the purpose of determining the extent of protection conferred by a European patent, due account shall be taken of any element which is equivalent to an element specified in the claims.
The
protocol for interpreting Article 69 EPC is applicable to granted European
patents validated in Denmark.
However, according Article 64(3) EPC, the question of infringement of a
European patent is dealt with under national, namely, Danish law.
Similar
to Article 69 EPC, Section 39 of the Danish Patent Act (DPA) stipulates that:
The extent of the protection conferred by the patent and the patent application shall be determined by the patent claims. For the interpretation of the claims the description may serve as a guide.
Article
3 of the DPA defines what acts are not to be performed by third parties, i.e.,
what acts can potentially constitute infringement. Specifically, according to this article:
…without permission of the patent owner, no one may exploit the
invention by making, offering, putting on the market or using a product that is
the subject matter of the patent, by importing or possessing a product for
these purposes, by using a process that is the subject matter of the patent or
by offering the process for use in Denmark, if the person offering the process
knows or it is obvious in the circumstances that the use of the process is
prohibited without the permission of the patent owner, or by offering, putting
on the market or using a product obtained by a process that is the subject
matter of the patent, or by importing or possessing the products for these
purposes.
There
are two major types of patent infringement in Denmark: 1) literal infringement;
and 2) infringement under the doctrine of equivalents. In order to assess
whether infringement has occurred it is first necessary to interpret the terms
used in the claims as discussed previously herein. Once the meaning of the claims has been
construed, a determination is made whether the claims have been literally
infringed, before moving on to determine whether the claims have been infringed
by equivalence. Of course, an assessment
of infringement under the doctrine of equivalents is only made when literal
infringement has not been found.
Literal infringement
In
Denmark, literal infringement requires an analysis of whether each and every
essential or significant part of the invention can be found in the alleged
infringing product or process. If each
and every essential or significant feature or part of the invention cannot be
found in the alleged infringing product or process, namely, if deviations exist
between the essential or significant features or parts of the invention and the
alleged infringing product or process, then there can be no finding of literal
infringement and the analysis moves to whether or not infringement exists under
the doctrine of equivalents.
Infringement under the Doctrine of Equivalents and
Prosecution History Estoppel
Under the
doctrine of equivalents, if deviations exist between the essential or
significant features or parts of the invention and the alleged infringing
product or process, a determination must be made whether the deviations would
be an obvious alternative recognized by one skilled in the art to be useful for
the same purpose as the essential or significant feature or part recited in the
claims. It is a fundamental premise that the protection afforded under the
doctrine of equivalents reflect a balance between clarity and fairness.
Specifically, the analysis involves determining whether the deviation (1)
performs the same function in the same way as the essential or significant
feature or part recited in the claim in order to solve the same problem as the
claimed invention; (2) would be recognized by one skilled in the art as being
an obvious alternative to the essential or significant feature or part recited
in the claim; and (3) was not specifically excluded during examination (namely,
the allegedly infringing product or process must not belong to the prior art).
As mentioned
above, one limitation on equivalency in Denmark is the doctrine of prosecution
history estoppel. Generally, the
Maritime Court will review statements and/or amendments made by the patentee
during examination. Statements made by
the patentee to the effect that a certain embodiment is not covered by the
scope of the claims will usually be binding.
Likewise, arguments and/or amendments made to claims to overcome novelty
and/or inventive step rejections will preclude a finding of infringement under
the doctrine of equivalents.
The High Court decision U 2009/1523 (Guldager) set the direction
for a more international approach toward applying Article 69 EPC which has been
followed in several recent cases. An examples of a case in the life science
area involving the doctrine of equivalents are:
Maritime Court decision A-19-17 (Eli Lilly and Company and Eli Lilly
Danmark A/S v. Fresenius Kabi AB v/Fresenius Kabi and Fresenius Kabi Oncology
Plc.), concerning Eli Lilly’s DK/EP 1 313 508 relating to the use of pemetrexed
in combination with vitamin B12 and optionally, folic acid (covering the
product Alimta®).
This post was
written by Lisa Mueller of Casimir Jones, and Lars Pallisgaard
Olsen and Verena Simpson of Guardian IP Consulting.